New Delhi: A bizarre case in Uttar Pradesh’s Gonda district has surfaced showing how lack of parental supervision for online games has proven financially hefty for the former.
In Gonda, two children aged below 12 and 14 have spent nearly Rs 1 lakh from their parents’ account for online transaction on Garena Free Fire game. These two kids have spent nearly Rs 7,000 and Rs 90,000 from their parents’ bank account online to purchase diamonds and clothings for Free Fire.
The incident came to light when the parents of these kids went to bank to withdraw money for school fees and other charges related to the curriculum. But they found out that the money from their bank account has been siphoned off. They first doubted it to be a case of cybercrime or bank account. But upon police probe it was revealed that the children got access of the google pay and other online bank log in details, using which they paid the amount for the online game purchase.
Gonda Police Superindent Santosh Mishra has told Zee Media that similar cases have been reported from the district where children have spent money from their parents’ account to make purchases for online game. He has also counselled both the parents for better parental supervision for such online games so that the minors can be protected. He also highlighted the importance of keeping bank records safe so that it cannot be misused by anyone including their own children.
Garena Free Fire also known as Free Fire Battlegrounds or Free Fire, is a battle royale game, developed by 111 Dots Studio and published by Garena for Android and iOS. Free Fire is the ultimate survival shooter multiplayer battle royale mobile game. Each 10-minute in game places you on a remote island where you are pit against 49 other players, all seeking survival. To be the last survivor is the only goal.
Players freely choose their starting point with their parachute, and aim to stay in the safe zone for as long as possible.
Garena Free Fire grew to become one of the top five grossing entries in the burgeoning genre since its launch in late 2017. The game received the award for the “Best Popular Vote Game” by the Google Play Store in 2019. As of May 2020, Free Fire has set a record with over 80 million daily active users globally. As of November 2019, Free Fire has grossed over $1 billion worldwide.
